Petition Letter
Dear Associate Dean (Academic),
I am petitioning to drop MATH212 (Winter, 2023) and MATH225 (Winter, 2023) after the final official date for dropping classes.
In Winter 2023, I was experiencing a significant sensitivity to stress throughout the duration of the term, encountering a stronger severity of this circumstance at the term’s end, including the final examinations period. This stress sensitivity refers to, in other words, a severe psychological and physiological response to any type of stressor. Specifically, the sensitivity manifested in, which tended to be of a persistent nature, heightened levels of anxiety, specific cognitive impairments, as well as debilitating physical sensations of chest pain, nausea, headaches, and toward the end of the term, intense tickling feelings along the nerves of my head. In tandem with this tendency toward a sensitive stress response, I was encountering a range of circumstantial difficulties outside of my control, that tended to exacerbate the health circumstance described above, and in addition, caused periods of short-term depression. In particular, outlined in the order of degree of impact on my academic abilities, I received an alarming notice of potential legal action from a landlord who evicted me on October 2022, had emergency medical treatment for severe eye pain experienced during the term’s designated reading week for midterm examination preparations, arranged my Winter 2023 housing accommodation on a timespan of a few weeks preceding the term, addressed extensive fraud of my parents’ credit cards in early January, and experienced theft of my smartphone during the fall term’s final examinations period, being without a phone until the initial weeks of the winter term. At the start of the winter term, observing the onset of the stress responsiveness and some of the personal life events, as well as understanding at the time that the circumstances of appeal 9846 could potentially have some presentation, I, appropriately, dropped my course load to a highly unparalleled number of two. Notwithstanding this mitigation effort, the combination of my health circumstance and personal life events was obstructive to the extent that completing my term coursework was, in fact, impossible, resulting entirely in failing grades.
The sensitive stress response tendency caused extraordinary challenge in engaging with the responsibilities of my courses. A few of the key course responsibilities impacted were my advanced preparations for course lectures, completion of written assignments, studying of course material, and writing of examinations. To provide a more precise and complete understanding of the stress sensitivity, this situation refers to, in other words, persistent symptoms induced or caused by stress related to the full range of demands requiring my attention throughout the term, and in particular, the events specified in the preceding paragraph. This sensitivity also encompasses a symptom of an intense experience of stress out-of-proportion to the importance of the precipitating event. From the American Psychological Association, frequent and prolonged activations of the stress response system can disrupt almost all of the body’s processes, due to constant over-exposure to stress hormones. Two of these body processes, information processing and memory, are critical to a student’s academic abilities. Repeated and extended periods of over-exposure to these hormones considerably impairs information processing and related concentration abilities, thereby delaying my comprehension and internalization of new course material. Such exposure also interferes with the consolidation and retrieval of memories, impacting my learning of new course concepts and subsequent demonstration of these learnings in deliverables. To provide a specific example related to memory, even after having applied academic strategies that improve commitment and retrieval of information, I nonetheless faced significant barriers in recollecting learned material from memory when writing my examinations and assignments. These impairments in particular had a stronger impact on my course performance, relative to the physical sensations.
The stress sensitivity not only resulted in significant impairments, but also caused considerable physical distress throughout the semester. Regarding an example related to distress, in the majority of instances of applying focus during final examination preparations, unbearable tickling sensations arose in my head nerves, completely inhibiting any application of effort toward such study. I did not seek immediate medical treatment for this condition because cognitive strain is a natural part of the intellectual efforts involved in studying. This strain tends to occur when the brain is tasked with processing complex information, solving intricate problems, or engaging in demanding mental tasks. Additionally, I reasonably felt, not having had any history with neurological challenges, that the condition would resolve on its own. However, this symptom progressively worsened until the end of the winter examinations period. With specific regard to my circumstantial difficulties in Winter 2023, while performing course responsibilities, my attention tended to considerably be fragmented by the unusual, external events, also not permitting me to place efforts toward my coursework.
The health condition outlined in this petition may tangentially be related to the situation described in appeal 9846. Stress sensitivity, a health factor raised in this petition, shares inherent similarities with the intrusive thoughts and prolonged anxiety states highlighted in appeal 9846, and both situations have similar symptoms. Despite this relatedness, the health circumstance of this petition and circumstances from Winter 2022 are indeed distinct from one another, because I was not at all experienced in addressing the processing and memory impairments described earlier in this letter, as well as the physical sensations that were more persistent and intense than ever felt before. With regard to appeal 9846, uncontrollable and unbearable intrusive thought cycles were the highlight, substantial challenge hindering the application of my academic abilities, while the physical manifestations related to stress and anxiety are the primary barrier for this current appeal. Since the onset of the intrusive thoughts in Fall 2021, I have made remarkable improvements toward the difficulty and have consistently and diligently taken proactive steps toward mitigating its potential effects on my academic work. These steps have, namely, been regular meetings with several counsellors at Student Wellness Services (SWS), communication with loved ones for support, and monitoring of my academic progress in courses. In other words, the intrusive thoughts, as well as prolonged states of unease or anxiety, did not pose as a challenge for me in Winter 2023. What instead posed as a challenge was cognitive impairments and physical sensations, both of which were induced or caused by repeated, extended periods of exposure to stress.
As of filing, the circumstances of this petition have resolved. Noticing the relatedness of this petition’s health circumstance to the relevant set of circumstances from appeal 9846, my counsellor and I have determined that an optimal form of treatment from a specialized medical professional, or group of such, should be sought, who can further assess the health challenges outlined in this letter and provide a course of treatment that would allow for their effective resolution. A diligent effort to find the appropriate medical support, with a temporary pause from academic work, is well underway. With regard to ensuring a successful return to studies, I will be graduating with my BCmpH degree in October of this year and do not anticipate a return to studies within the next calendar year, by the end of which the circumstances of both this petition and appeal 9846 are expected to completely be resolved.
To summarize, the mitigation effort, along with the extenuating health and situational circumstances, hindered the possibility of conducting any assessment and subsequent drop of MATH212 and MATH225 prior to the academic penalty deadline. The emergence of further severe stress responses in the final weeks of the term, deeply affecting my course performance, also impeded any ability to drop these two courses prior to the academic deadline, as this development arose after such date. With regard to this appeal’s documentation, attached is a letter of support from my personal counsellor, Roger Davidson. On February 25th, I received emergency medical treatment due to a corneal foreign body placed in one of my eyes for more than 48 hours preceding the visit, which is known to cause sharp pain. The relevant emergency record from the William Osler Health System hospital is attached, along with a record of a follow-up visit with an ophthalmologist in the Greater Toronto Area, as referred by the emergency physician. Please note that the statement of medical history on the ophthalmologist’s clinical notes is not relevant to the health circumstance discussed in this letter, and appropriately, should not be considered in the context of this appeal. All documentation is appropriately titled.
I would be more than happy to timely address any questions or concerns by email or telephone, including any requests for further documentation. Please do not hesitate to contact me if such inquiries are apparent.
Sincerely,
Anshul Pattoo
I am petitioning to drop MATH212 (Winter, 2023) and MATH225 (Winter, 2023) after the final official date for dropping classes.
In Winter 2023, I was experiencing a significant sensitivity to stress throughout the duration of the term, encountering a stronger severity of this circumstance at the term’s end, including the final examinations period. This stress sensitivity refers to, in other words, a severe psychological and physiological response to any type of stressor. Specifically, the sensitivity manifested in, which tended to be of a persistent nature, heightened levels of anxiety, specific cognitive impairments, as well as debilitating physical sensations of chest pain, nausea, headaches, and toward the end of the term, intense tickling feelings along the nerves of my head. In tandem with this tendency toward a sensitive stress response, I was encountering a range of circumstantial difficulties outside of my control, that tended to exacerbate the health circumstance described above, and in addition, caused periods of short-term depression. In particular, outlined in the order of degree of impact on my academic abilities, I received an alarming notice of potential legal action from a landlord who evicted me on October 2022, had emergency medical treatment for severe eye pain experienced during the term’s designated reading week for midterm examination preparations, arranged my Winter 2023 housing accommodation on a timespan of a few weeks preceding the term, addressed extensive fraud of my parents’ credit cards in early January, and experienced theft of my smartphone during the fall term’s final examinations period, being without a phone until the initial weeks of the winter term. At the start of the winter term, observing the onset of the stress responsiveness and some of the personal life events, as well as understanding at the time that the circumstances of appeal 9846 could potentially have some presentation, I, appropriately, dropped my course load to a highly unparalleled number of two. Notwithstanding this mitigation effort, the combination of my health circumstance and personal life events was obstructive to the extent that completing my term coursework was, in fact, impossible, resulting entirely in failing grades.
The sensitive stress response tendency caused extraordinary challenge in engaging with the responsibilities of my courses. A few of the key course responsibilities impacted were my advanced preparations for course lectures, completion of written assignments, studying of course material, and writing of examinations. To provide a more precise and complete understanding of the stress sensitivity, this situation refers to, in other words, persistent symptoms induced or caused by stress related to the full range of demands requiring my attention throughout the term, and in particular, the events specified in the preceding paragraph. This sensitivity also encompasses a symptom of an intense experience of stress out-of-proportion to the importance of the precipitating event. From the American Psychological Association, frequent and prolonged activations of the stress response system can disrupt almost all of the body’s processes, due to constant over-exposure to stress hormones. Two of these body processes, information processing and memory, are critical to a student’s academic abilities. Repeated and extended periods of over-exposure to these hormones considerably impairs information processing and related concentration abilities, thereby delaying my comprehension and internalization of new course material. Such exposure also interferes with the consolidation and retrieval of memories, impacting my learning of new course concepts and subsequent demonstration of these learnings in deliverables. To provide a specific example related to memory, even after having applied academic strategies that improve commitment and retrieval of information, I nonetheless faced significant barriers in recollecting learned material from memory when writing my examinations and assignments. These impairments in particular had a stronger impact on my course performance, relative to the physical sensations.
The stress sensitivity not only resulted in significant impairments, but also caused considerable physical distress throughout the semester. Regarding an example related to distress, in the majority of instances of applying focus during final examination preparations, unbearable tickling sensations arose in my head nerves, completely inhibiting any application of effort toward such study. I did not seek immediate medical treatment for this condition because cognitive strain is a natural part of the intellectual efforts involved in studying. This strain tends to occur when the brain is tasked with processing complex information, solving intricate problems, or engaging in demanding mental tasks. Additionally, I reasonably felt, not having had any history with neurological challenges, that the condition would resolve on its own. However, this symptom progressively worsened until the end of the winter examinations period. With specific regard to my circumstantial difficulties in Winter 2023, while performing course responsibilities, my attention tended to considerably be fragmented by the unusual, external events, also not permitting me to place efforts toward my coursework.
The health condition outlined in this petition may tangentially be related to the situation described in appeal 9846. Stress sensitivity, a health factor raised in this petition, shares inherent similarities with the intrusive thoughts and prolonged anxiety states highlighted in appeal 9846, and both situations have similar symptoms. Despite this relatedness, the health circumstance of this petition and circumstances from Winter 2022 are indeed distinct from one another, because I was not at all experienced in addressing the processing and memory impairments described earlier in this letter, as well as the physical sensations that were more persistent and intense than ever felt before. With regard to appeal 9846, uncontrollable and unbearable intrusive thought cycles were the highlight, substantial challenge hindering the application of my academic abilities, while the physical manifestations related to stress and anxiety are the primary barrier for this current appeal. Since the onset of the intrusive thoughts in Fall 2021, I have made remarkable improvements toward the difficulty and have consistently and diligently taken proactive steps toward mitigating its potential effects on my academic work. These steps have, namely, been regular meetings with several counsellors at Student Wellness Services (SWS), communication with loved ones for support, and monitoring of my academic progress in courses. In other words, the intrusive thoughts, as well as prolonged states of unease or anxiety, did not pose as a challenge for me in Winter 2023. What instead posed as a challenge was cognitive impairments and physical sensations, both of which were induced or caused by repeated, extended periods of exposure to stress.
As of filing, the circumstances of this petition have resolved. Noticing the relatedness of this petition’s health circumstance to the relevant set of circumstances from appeal 9846, my counsellor and I have determined that an optimal form of treatment from a specialized medical professional, or group of such, should be sought, who can further assess the health challenges outlined in this letter and provide a course of treatment that would allow for their effective resolution. A diligent effort to find the appropriate medical support, with a temporary pause from academic work, is well underway. With regard to ensuring a successful return to studies, I will be graduating with my BCmpH degree in October of this year and do not anticipate a return to studies within the next calendar year, by the end of which the circumstances of both this petition and appeal 9846 are expected to completely be resolved.
To summarize, the mitigation effort, along with the extenuating health and situational circumstances, hindered the possibility of conducting any assessment and subsequent drop of MATH212 and MATH225 prior to the academic penalty deadline. The emergence of further severe stress responses in the final weeks of the term, deeply affecting my course performance, also impeded any ability to drop these two courses prior to the academic deadline, as this development arose after such date. With regard to this appeal’s documentation, attached is a letter of support from my personal counsellor, Roger Davidson. On February 25th, I received emergency medical treatment due to a corneal foreign body placed in one of my eyes for more than 48 hours preceding the visit, which is known to cause sharp pain. The relevant emergency record from the William Osler Health System hospital is attached, along with a record of a follow-up visit with an ophthalmologist in the Greater Toronto Area, as referred by the emergency physician. Please note that the statement of medical history on the ophthalmologist’s clinical notes is not relevant to the health circumstance discussed in this letter, and appropriately, should not be considered in the context of this appeal. All documentation is appropriately titled.
I would be more than happy to timely address any questions or concerns by email or telephone, including any requests for further documentation. Please do not hesitate to contact me if such inquiries are apparent.
Sincerely,
Anshul Pattoo